Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky has faced allegations of inappropriate connections to the Kremlin , prompting the US , the UK , and the Netherlands to ban the use of Kaspersky products across government agencies. Nevertheless, the allegations remain inconclusive, and Kaspersky is consistently a top-rated antivirus product.
If this app is already on your PC, you might be wondering why you should even bother with a free third-party antivirus solution.
Its malware detection capabilities have improved, and it performed well in hands-on testing. Still, PCMag gives it a rather lukewarm review:. Many free third-party apps are more effective at keeping you safe. The company will continue to support the antivirus software for the time being, but their overall support for Windows 7 has ended, and they recommend you upgrade to Windows Essential protection: PCMag reports that Sophos achieved excellent scores in their hands-on tests and excellent protection against malicious websites.
But unlike the other major players on this list, Sophos has few independent lab test results to prove its efficacy. Sophos also received a poor phishing protection score from PCMag. It's extremely short on features, though, and we'd like to see more coverage from the testing labs, too. So here are few more antivirus products to consider:. Essential protection: Adaware Antivirus Free has received mixed scores in past independent tests, and PCMag cautions that Adaware has no recent test scores to show.
And for an antivirus, protection should always be the 1 concern. Check Point ZoneAlarm is a free antivirus-firewall combo that licenses its antivirus engine from security giant Kaspersky. Essential protection: Pairing strong antivirus prevention with a firewall can be good enough for basic computing. Features: Unfortunately, this free cybersecurity solution is missing many features you would expect to see, such as web-based security, protection against malicious websites, and personal data protection.
Essential protection: Qihoo formerly used the same core antivirus as Bitdefender and Avira, but it no longer does. Sadly, its malware protection has suffered for it. Features: Qihoo comes with an impressive suite of bonus features, including cleanup and tuneup utilities, an adblocker , and more.
You may have been expecting to see some big-name antivirus players on this list, like Norton, McAfee, or Malwarebytes. Norton offers only paid antivirus software. McAfee is the same as Norton — a free trial, but no free version. You can find this in their paid products, but why not go with a full-service free option instead?
You can avoid some forms of malware by practicing smart digital habits like using secure messaging apps and checking that websites are safe before you use them. But hackers are craftier than ever. Social engineering tricks , phishing scams, malicious URLs and infected downloads… the list goes on. Cybercriminals find ways to reach even the most careful among us. Make sure to choose one of our best security software options with robust protection against all kinds of online threats.
Mobile devices may also be susceptible to malware, so protect yours with a security program that can remove malware from your smartphone. When it comes to the best virus scanners and best anti-malware tools, there are tons of choices.
Effectiveness: Of course, the most important factor is how effective the antivirus engine is against malware and other threats. Gone are the days when the primary internet baddie was the computer virus. If you want the best protection for all of your devices, you need to pay for a premium antivirus program like Norton or Bitdefender. While there are literally billions of malware attacks reported annually, trojans and adware are consistently the most common types of malware found on Windows computers.
Trojans look like other files with extensions like. If you decide to uninstall your third-party antivirus, your PC will automatically ask you to reactivate the Windows Defender antivirus. Professional Reviews. Affiliate Commissions. Reviews Guidelines. Katarina Glamoslija Updated on: November 25, This article contains. Short on time? Download Avira Free Security for Windows here.
Quick summary of the best free Windows antiviruses for 1. TotalAV — Simple free antivirus with an intuitive interface recommended for beginners.
Kaspersky — Free extras like a VPN, dark web monitoring, and a password manager. Malwarebytes — Minimalistic antivirus with on-demand scanning. Sophos — Good real-time scanning with remote access for 3 PCs. Comparison of the Best Free Antiviruses for Windows in Here are a few of them: Avast. While Avast — and their subsidiary antivirus company AVG — continue to offer two pieces of widely used free antivirus software Avast Free Antivirus and AVG AntiVirus Free their repeated privacy violations have caused too many concerns.
You can read more here. McAfee is one of my favorite antiviruses of It comes with an advanced anti-malware engine, excellent web protections, and a VPN with unlimited data. Why should I use a free antivirus instead of Windows Defender? Is it safe to use a free antivirus?
Is Avast free? What are the most common types of viruses that affect Windows computers? Will Windows allow me to install a free antivirus? Read Review Visit Website. And because Kaspersky Security Cloud — Free receives automatic updates, you can be sure your antivirus program is always up to date. Interested in advanced features? Check out our different editions. Kaspersky Security Cloud Personal. Kaspersky Security Cloud Free. Get free version.
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